Migration Histories of Turks in Europe

A book showcasing the first research findings from the 2000 Families project has now been published.

The book looks at how Turkish migrants, their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren have benefited from moving to Europe by comparing a range of outcomes to those of Turkish families who stayed behind.

From the jobs they got to how they got on at school and university, their relationships with friends and family to their attitudes towards religion, marriage, gender and Turkish culture, the book provides a fascinating insight into the lives of the Turkish diaspora.

Lead researcher on the project behind the book, Ayse Guveli, said:

‘Migration is a life-changing experience not only for migrants themselves but also for those left behind. Our unique approach and the unprecedented data we have collected from 2000 Turkish families and their 50,000 family members reveals the true impact of migration across many aspects of their lives.’

2,000 Families: identifying the research potential of an origins-of-migration studyis an article published in the Journal of Ethnic and Racial Studies. It outlines the theoretical and methodological discussions in the field, design and data of the 2,000 Families study and provides indicative findings, framed within a theoretical perspective of “dissimilation” from origins, and reflect on its potential for future migration research.

Questions about the real benefits of migrating from one country to another can now be answered with the help of the unprecedented 2000 Families data.

The research team led by Dr Ayse Guveli at the University of Essex spent 5 years collecting information about men who migrated from certain regions of Turkey to Europe in the 1960s and the impact this had on their lives, the lives of their children and their grandchildren no matter where they ended up in the world.

The data includes information about the complete genealogies of 2000 ancestors who were born in five high sending regions in Turkey between 1925 and 1945. Eighty per cent of these ancestors moved to Europe between 1960 and 1974 while 20% stayed put.

From basic information about where they are from, their age and sex to their education and jobs, their religion, family and friendship networks and their attitudes, beliefs and orientation about gender roles, politics and culture, the data is now available for researchers around the world to use in their efforts to better understand the real impacts of migration.

The researchers behind the project have already published a book which takes a first look at what the study can tell us about how migrants get on compared with those who stay behind.

From the sort of education and jobs they get to how many children they have, their attitudes towards gender equality and religion, the book provides fascinating insights into the effects of migration on families over three to four generations.

Ayse Guveli hopes other researchers will now delve into the freely-available data-set to look at a range of migration research questions.

Because we collected information from those who left, those who stayed and those who returned, this detailed and rich information can help us understand much better who benefits and who loses in the migration process. We also get a much better feel for the impact that moving has on people’s attitudes and beliefs around important issues such as gender equality and arranged marriage.

In Episode 6 of our 2000 Families podcast, Dr Niels Spierings from the Radboud University in the Netherlands talks about what the study tell us about the participants’ attitudes towards gender equality.

The study makes use of data from the 2000 Families project to examine whether immigration affects the extent to which children of migrants are more likely to vote if their parents vote (and vice versa).

The research by 2000 Families co-researcher Niels Spierings, shows a stronger similarity in going to the voting booth between parent and child pairs in Europe than Turkey, but only if the child grew up in Europe. European citizens with a Turkish background who vote in national elections in Europe thus seem to mobilize other household members.

The 2000 Families podcast series has launched this week with its first episode now available on our website and on iTunes, where you can subscribe to the series and future episodes.

Lead researcher Ayse Guveli kicks our podcast off with an interview about the background to the study, the data that has been collected from the study’s 50,000 participants and an overview of some of the study’s first findings.

Future episodes will include interviews with Ayse’s international team of academics about their research using the data. They will include findings about education and work, family and friends, marriage and fertility, religion, attitudes and beliefs.

The series is produced and edited by former BBC journalist, Christine Garrington of Research Podcasts.

The first research findings from our unprecedented and unique research study looking at the lives of 50,000 Turkish family members have been published in a fascinating new book.

The book examines how Turkish migrants, their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren have benefited from moving to Europe by looking at a whole range of things from their education and work to friends and family, religion and culture.

Its approach is unique in that it compares the lives of those who migrated to nine different European countries with those families who chose not to leave.

In the first episode of our 2000 Families Podcast, lead researcher on the study, Dr Ayse Guveli from the University of Essex explains the background to this Norface funded project.